There has been no shortage of coverage surrounding S.B. 8, Texas' newly-enacted law that outlaws abortion upon fetal heartbeat detection. While the Supreme Court voted 5-4 to uphold the new legislation, several pro-abortion lawmakers, including President Biden and Attorney General Merrick Garland, have been hard at work to undermine the law. In addition to outlawing abortion at roughly six weeks gestation, S.B. 8 allows citizens to pursue legal action against anyone who "aids or abets" a woman seeking an illegal abortion. Those who successfully bring lawsuits under S.B. 8 can receive up to $10,000. A new poll published Monday shows where Americans stand on S.B. 8 and these two key provisions.
The poll, conducted by NPR, PBS NewsHour, and Marist Institute for Public Opinion, shows where Americans stand on S.B. 8. and how the stats differ when broken down by political party. In the poll, an overall 58 percent of respondents oppose abortion bans after fetal cardiac activity, and 74 percent of respondents oppose citizens being allowed to seek legal action for those providing or aiding an illegal abortion.
When these numbers were broken down by political party, 90 percent of Democrats, 57 percent of Republicans, and 74 percent of Independents opposed the S.B. 8 provision allowing citizens to sue those who provide or aid an illegal abortion. On the other hand, 61 percent of Democrats, 59 percent of Republicans, and 53 percent of Independents oppose abortion bans upon fetal cardiac activity.
The poll also broke the numbers down based on gender. Sixty-eight percent of men and 79 percent of women oppose the provision allowing citizens to sue abortion providers or those who aid an illegal abortion. In addition, 53 percent of men and 63 percent of women oppose abortion bans upon fetal cardiac activity.
The poll write-up states that white college graduates make up the most amount of people against the "heartbeat" provision, including 71 percent of white, college-educated women and 64 percent of white, college-educated men. When it comes to the provision that would allow citizens to sue abortion providers, this provision is "wildly unpopular" across all demographics.
The poll, conducted from Sept. 20-16, consisted of 1,220 adults and has a margin of error of 3.4 percentage points.
